MEF: it would not be viable to standardize minimum pensions in the ONP

Last Wednesday, the head of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), Alex Contrerasrevealed that as part of the reform of the Pension System that the Government is working on, “a minimum pension that equates all public systems” will be established since “there cannot be such heterogeneous and unequal regimes within the State.”

The proposal would be impossible to carry out because the National Pension System (SNP) already has minimum pensions that are very different from each other and would generate a very high fiscal cost. The maximum range that could be raised is up to S/50, suggests Noelia Bernal, a professor of Economics at the Universidad del Pacífico.

According to the specialist, the pension amount in the case of retirees from the 19990 scheme who contributed ten years, starts from S/250 per month or is proportional to their contributions; while in those who contributed 20 or more years it goes from S/500. She adds that in other regimes “there are very high minimum pensions”, which even reach the value of the minimum living wage.

For his part, economist Javier Olivera comments that the Executive’s initiative would benefit very small sectors as “people who worked in certain public companies or remnants of those who are in 20530”, and reiterated that the reform must aim to correct the disconnection between the pension systems.

ONP Overview

He National Pension System (SNP) It has 4.7 million members, of which more than 99% belong to the 19990 regime and only 5,833 are from the fishing industry, according to the latest official data as of June 2022.

In this same month, the SNP accumulated 665,746 pensioners. Of these, more than 90% (605,432 people) correspond to the 19990 regime, which includes special pensions such as civil construction workers, maritime personnel, as well as pilots and co-pilots, etc.

In detail, 47% of the beneficiaries of DL 19990, that is, 284,400 retirees received between S/500 and S/700 each month. While 197,000 receive the minimum monthly payment that starts from S / 250.

In the case of DL 2053033,124 pensioners are still in the SNP, of which more than 66% earn between S/1,000 and S/1,500, and only 4.2% (1,381 people) receive the minimum pension of S/500.

Meanwhile, the pensioners of the 18846 scheme corresponding to compensation for occupational diseases reached 18,245 in June 2022. Of these, 43%, that is, 7,842 received a pension of less than or equal to S/250.

Pension reform at key times

The Congressional Labor Commission will vote in the coming days on the reconsideration of the proposal aimed at reforming the pension system called the Universal Integrated Pension System (SIUP).

The initiative was already rejected last week in the aforementioned group by 11 votes against and eight in favor.

The forecast that includes 13 projects proposes that it be a single entity that manages the affiliates who today are in the AFP or the ONP, the pensioners of the Contigo program and those of Pensión 65.

The work commission is chaired by congresswoman Sigrid Bazán rejected the proposal last week. Photo: Congress

Data

Scope. The ONP administers regime 19990, as well as 20530, in this case, only for extinct public entities.

Others. The ONP also pays the pensions of the Fishing Regime, regulated by the Law No. 30003.